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Dance/Transcript
Transcript The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby Tim is shown humming a tune while he's dancing with a panda bear. Moby approaches. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Oh . . .oh, well the school dance is next week. I, ah . . . I want to be ready. Tim holds up a letter which reads: Dear Tim and Moby, Do I have to go to the school dance? Why do people dance anyway? From, Gregory. TIM: Uh, let’s take the second question first. Dance is rhythmic body movement, usually to music. An animation shows a boy dancing with musical notes around him. TIM: It turns everyday movements like stepping, bending over, and stretching, into a form of communication or expression. An image show three human silhouettes doing different body movements Tim describes. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Well, people dance for all sorts of reasons. They dance to express emotions or ideas, to tell a story, or for special occasions, like births, weddings, and rites of passage like graduation. A series of pictures appears on the screen. A smiling face, then a lightbulb, then a book, then a baby, then a pair of wedding rings, then a graduation cap. TIM: In some countries, even funerals have dancing! An image shows black Asian people dancing at a funeral. TIM: And many cultures dance just for fun. A man and a woman are shown dancing on the dance floor. Moby: Beep? TIM: Oh, the human body can do all sorts of things. With enough training, it can perform an almost infinite combination of movements. A series of human silhouettes is shown doing many different dance moves. TIM: Time is a big element of dance—it governs how fast the body moves, or the kind of rhythm it moves to. An animation shows a man dancing while time is counted with numbers 1—4 above him. TIM: Dance is also about a way a person’s body weight and center of gravity are used. An arrow is shown pointing up and down on the human silhouette's body. TIM: Changing those affects whether the body leaps up into the air or is dragged down by gravity. An image shows two human silhouettes. One of them is jumping up while the other is sitting down. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Well, dance can pretty much be split up into two categories: participation dance and presentation dance. Presentation dances are usually performed in front of an audience by highly trained, specialized dancers. A man is shown dancing with his leg extended out straight in front of him. TIM: They are often choreographed, meaning the dance moves are designed in a very specific pattern. An animation shows four human silhouettes holding one finger up in the air. TIM: Sometimes several dancers do the same thing at once, and sometimes they do different moves at the same time. The human silhouettes are changed doing different dance moves. TIM: Such dances are considered an art form, and they’re performed in special places. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Okay, so for instance, many traditional Japanese dances took place at the imperial court; classic Indian dances take place in temples; and ballet often occurs in a theater. An image show three slides indicating the different dance places that Tim describes. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Oh. Ballet is a type of dance that began in Europe during the Renaissance and has evolved into a highly elaborate art form over the past 500 years. An image shows a woman in white ballet clothes leaping in the night sky with her arms above her head. TIM: It tells a story through music and choreography, often with elaborate sets and costumes. The image zooms out to reveal other women dancing wearing white ballet clothes on a stage with trees and a moon in the sky. Then a group of women are shown dancing wearing white ballet clothes. One woman is jumping high with her arms above her head. TIM: Mikhail Baryshnikov is one of the most famous ballet dancers of the last 50 years. An image shows Mikhail Baryshnikov doing ballet dances. TIM: Ballet is really popular today, but it is not the only form of western presentation dance. An image shows the ballet picture again. TIM: Modern dance, which started in the late 19th century, uses freer, more flowing movements and costumes. An image shows two dancers with modern dance costumes. One of them is lifting his leg. Martha Graham was one of the pioneers of this movement. An image shows Martha Graham doing modern dances. Both ballet and modern dance require years and years of training. TIM: Participation dances, on the other hand, are designed for anyone to do, so they tend to use repetitive motions that are pretty easy to learn. Folk dancing, break dancing, and just regular old dancing around are all participation dances. An image shows three slides indicating the participation dances that Tim describes. TIM: Folk dancing is a general term for all sorts of dances that people do at social events. Three men are shown dancing in white clothes with red suspenders and waving white flags over their heads. TIM: Lots and lots of countries have traditional folk dances. One traditional American folk dance is the square dance! An image shows country boys and country girls doing the square dance. Ballroom dancing is often both a participation and a presentation dance. Lots of people still get together to perform dances like the waltz, tango, and the foxtrot. An image shows a man and woman doing the waltz with other people are doing it in the background. TIM: But professional ballroom dancers perform and compete in front of huge audiences. Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers were famous ballroom dancers of the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. A well-dressed man and woman are shown dancing. MOBY: Beep? TIM: Well, sure some people are better at dancing than others. But it’s something that people have been doing for, well probably as long as we’ve been around. A group of people are shown dancing in front of a large bonfire. TIM: So, do you have to go to the school dance? Well no. But, you know, it might be fun! Tim and Moby are shown dancing while Tim hums a tune again. MOBY: Beep. Tim: You know, I never get to lead.Category:BrainPOP Transcripts